The Role of Autonomy and Pubertal Status in Understanding Age Differences in Maternal Involvement in Diabetes Responsibility across Adolescence

Objective To examine how autonomy and pubertal status explain age decreases in maternal involvement in type 1 diabetes management across adolescence, how they relate to metabolic control, and the reasons that guide declines in maternal involvement. Methods One hundred twenty-seven children ages 10–1...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of pediatric psychology 2004-01, Vol.29 (1), p.35-46
Main Authors: Palmer, Debra L., Berg, Cynthia A., Wiebe, Deborah J., Beveridge, Ryan M., Korbel, Carolyn D., Upchurch, Renn, Swinyard, Michael T., Lindsay, Rob, Donaldson, David L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
adolescents
Adult
age
Age Factors
Attitude to Health
autonomy
Biological and medical sciences
Child
diabetes
Diabetes Mellitus - psychology
Diabetes. Impaired glucose tolerance
Endocrine pancreas. Apud cells (diseases)
Endocrinopathies
Female
Humans
Male
Management. Various non-drug treatments. Langerhans islet grafts
Maternal Behavior
Medical sciences
Mother-Child Relations
mothers
Personal Autonomy
pubertal status
Puberty - physiology
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Summary:Objective To examine how autonomy and pubertal status explain age decreases in maternal involvement in type 1 diabetes management across adolescence, how they relate to metabolic control, and the reasons that guide declines in maternal involvement. Methods One hundred twenty-seven children ages 10–15 years with type 1 diabetes and their mothers participated. Data included maternal and child report of diabetes management, child report of autonomy level, maternal report of pubertal status, maternal reports of reasons for transfer of diabetes responsibility, and glycosylated hemoglobin (Hba1c) values. Results Autonomy and pubertal status partially mediated age effects on reports of maternal involvement. Mothers' reasons for transferring responsibility included responding to the child's competence, promoting competence and maturity in their child, and minimizing hassles and conflict. The transfer of diabetes responsibility from mother to child without sufficient autonomy and when pubertal status was low was related to higher Hba1c values. Conclusions The importance of chronological age for changes in maternal involvement suggests the need to examine mothers' and adolescents' developmental expectations for diabetes management. The reasons for transferring responsibility from mother to child suggest many avenues for intervention.
ISSN:0146-8693
1465-735X
DOI:10.1093/jpepsy/jsh005